Discussing Entrepreneurship Environments In Sri Lanka Business Essay

What is Entrepreneurship? Kuratko et Al. In the book Entrepreneurship: Theory Process Practice strives to underscore that entrepreneurship is non simply the plants and built-in features of one person, but the correlativity of 4 major dimensions, that of the Individual, Organization, Environment and the Process. ( Kuratko et. Al, 2007 )

Who is an Entrepreneur? Cantillon ( 1725 ) described the enterpriser as a rational determination shaper who assumed the hazard and provided direction for the house.

This assignment attempts to sketch the entrepreneurial plant of Thusitha Ranasinghe, a Sri Lankan born man of affairs who is now the Managing Director of Maximus ( Pvt. ) Ltd. This person has had mensurable success in covering with several ventures. And, has been consistent in taking the way of innovativeness in about all his enterprise. His focal point on societal and environmental facets has led to, consciousness of issues blighting Sri Lankan wildlife ; making occupation chances in rural Sri Lanka ; and significantly, seting Sri Lanka on the map as a state of nutriment and entrepreneurial copiousness.

1.0 Introduction

In discoursing Entrepreneurship in Sri Lanka, it is of import to advert the greater Asiatic population ‘s magnetic attraction towards entrepreneurship.

“ Hofstede is most good known for his work on four dimensions of cultural variableness, normally referred to as “ Hofstede ‘s Dimensions. ” These include: Uncertainty Avoidance, Power Distance, Masculinity-Femininity, Individualism-Collectivism, Confucian Dynamism. These dimensions were arrived in his 1980 publication, “ Culture ‘s effects: International differences in work-related values. ” The survey took bing study informations ( sample size of 116,000 ) collected from a transnational corporation ( IBM ) . The consequence was a mark in each of the dimensions for 40 different countries. “

Derived from Hofstede ‘s ( 1980 ) Cultural dimensions the undermentioned clasp true to a great extent, when comparing cross cultural differences of Western and Asiatic states ‘ leaning towards entrepreneurship.

Fig 1

The diagram depicts low index for states of Asiatic beginning, such as Sri Lanka and a comparatively higher index for Western states, such as United States.

Tolerance for ambiguity: Asiatics take a hazard averse stance to most concern ventures and are less orientated towards experimentation of thoughts, as compared to Western states.

Individuality: “ ; ; ; ; This refers to the strength of the ties people have to others within the community ” . ( mindtools.com,2009 ) Asians take a more “ corporate ” stance to that of Westerners, who are relatively more individualistic in their determination devising. This trait is existing due to the impact of household ties and traditions associated with Asiatic civilization.

Masculinity-femininity: ; ; ; ; ” This refers to how much a society sticks with, and values, traditional male and female functions. ”

In most Asiatic states, such as Sri Lanka, the functions of work forces and adult females are non clearly defined, in other words, work forces are allowed to be “ sensitive ” towards certain issues, and adult females given freedom of pick to come in into high powered places. ( good illustration being, the first adult female Prime Minister in the universe, being from Sri Lanka. )

Locus of control: Much of the control of ventures and concern activities, lie outside the control of persons from Asiatic beginning, such as Sri Lanka. In other words, the operating environment tends to play a polar function in the success of the venture. This environment will include Government imposed countenances, regulations and ordinances ; a few strong concern minded persons ordering footings etc.

2.0 Entrepreneurship in a Sri Lankan context

Concentrating more within the confines of Sri Lanka, the followers has been derived from a survey conducted on little graduated table enterprisers from Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. The sample size has been limited to fifty from each several state.

The tabular informations above shows that a bulk of persons, take on the mantle of entrepreneurial activities at a instead “ mature ” degree. They seem to believe in being “ learned ” and “ experient ” before shiping on a “ hazardous ” escapade of get downing or venturing-off in a “ whole new ” way.

School attended

Third Education

Background

Printing – the household trade for 3 coevalss

The Beginning

The thought was conceived from hearing of a Kenyan game Texas Ranger, who wanted to do paper utilizing Elephant droppings

Prevalent environment

Elephants have no natural enemies, due to their elephantine size. Worlds fare their lone menace. Menace is posed non due tusk-poaching, meat or fell, but instead for being “ crop-destroyers ” . The chief beginning of support is agriculture in most rural Sri Lanka. Elephants, due to their rapacious appetency, consume immense sums of flora. Farmers are disgruntled by this and inhumanely react by killing elephants. About 4000 elephants may hold died as a direct consequence of the human-elephant struggle since 1950. ( Vagamondi.com, 2009 )

The Organization

The venture, Maximus Pvt. Ltd, a limited liability company, was started in the twelvemonth 1997. There were merely 7 employees at the clip. The company was set up to recycle waste publishing paper. The company now operates from the new caput office on Dam Street, Colombo. ; ; ; ; The company has four productions Centres ‘ operating at Kegalle, Seegiriya Kadalama and Dambulla. It presently employees over 200 forces and has a merchandise catalogue of over 50 alone creative activities. ( sri lankan leaders.com, 2009 )

Turning point – Constantan!

The operation was based near the Millennium Elephant Foundation, in Kegalle. Soon after beginning of operations, they realised that more and more waste stuff, such as rice Paddy straw and banana bark could be used in adding spirit and coloring material to the mix. Not long after, hearing of a Kenyan game Texas Ranger trying to bring forth paper from elephant droppings, research was carried out to utilize elephant droppings as the chief beginning for bring forthing recycled paper. “ Elephant droppings paper ” was ab initio produced by utilizing waste from the six occupant elephants. ( Vagamondi.com, 2009 )

Patents acquired

No. 11440 ( For the industry of elephant dung paper )

No. 13016 ( For the industry of elephant dung paper )

Awards won

Winner of The World Challenge for Entrepreneurship and part to sustainable development at the grass root degree ( 2006 ) organized by the BBC, Newsweek Magazine and the Shell Company, The Hague, Netherlands.

Named by the Newsweek Magazine ( Nipponese Edition ) as one of hundred Social Entrepreneurs impacting alteration in the universe – June 2007.

Presidential Export Award of Sri Lanka in the Other Category subdivision awarded by the Export Development Board for the twelvemonth 2006 awarded in September 2007. ( sri lankan leaders.com, 2009 )

4.0 Multi-dimensional attack to entrepreneurship

Given that brief description into the life of Thusitha Ranasinghe and Maximus Pvt. Ltd, we now focus towards the entrepreneurial procedure ;

As referred to earlier, Entrepreneurship is the correlativity of 4 dimensions, that together, supply the model for unknoting this complex procedure. Namely the Individual, Environment, Organisation and the Process. We will see each in bend, in deriving an apprehension of the entrepreneurial attempts of Thusitha Ranasinghe and his administration, Maximus Pvt. Ltd.

Whether the person is a difficult nosed man of affairs, “ hell-bent ” on accomplishing his set ends ( McClelland, 1961 ) ; an avid hazard taker ( Palmer, 1971 ) or a “ predatory hazard avoider ” ( Webster, 1976 ) ; a individual who metamorphoses into a whole new individual under changing fortunes ( Danhoff, 1949 ) , research workers have come to the decision that the persons ‘ background and personality play a cardinal function in finding their entrepreneurial strength and ability.

In sing the person in inquiry, Thusitha Ranasinghe ; instruction has provided him the necessary tools to pull off a concern, coupled with a background in the printing industry, and supportive parents. He started the concern with his sister and another friend as concern spouses.

Need for accomplishment: “ The Presidential award, the first award in his concern life is one of of import incidents which changed his life. The acknowledgment he received as an enterpriser being in the little industry class has encouraged him to give his full capacity to the success of the concern ”

Locus of control and hazard taking leaning: Ranasinghe ever felt he had control over his actions and his concern ‘ hereafter. He one time stated that “ Almost everyone thought I was brainsick to go forth the accounting profession for publishing industry ” . But he did, and non blindly either, he ever took hazard into manus to accomplish what he thought was best for the company, the environment and the society.

Job satisfaction: He has taken great satisfaction in bring forthing many varied merchandises, utilizing natural waste stuff, and particularly enjoys the advanced procedure of uniting these stuffs to churn out so many creations. “ Mr. Ranasinghe ever believes that giving chance to convey up “ brainsick thoughts ” is the best manner to be advanced which is the competitory advantage of his concern ” . His creativeness was enhanced by his ability to recognize relationships between the varied natural stuff that could be used.

4.2 The Environment

Initial get down up venture support was provided by the nest eggs of the three establishing spouses. After much research and experimentation, accomplishments were acquired into bring forthing recycled paper from waste stuff. Supplies were abundant and found in the same locality as where the works was situated. “ Soon Maximus employs about 210 people in four manufacturing/ retailing locations scattered around the state. Each of these fabrication workss, completing Centres and mercantile establishments have become good well-thought-of beginnings of employment in the vicinity in which Maximus operates in. A bulk of the young person employed by Maximus are youth from households belonging to low income brackets and minimal degrees of preparation in any field of employment. ”

The administration operates 4 bring forthing Centres in cardinal countries, where there is copiousness of natural stuff. Namely in Kandalama, Seegiriya, Dambulla and their original venue, Kegalle. The caput office operates from the bosom of Colombo, and ideally situated to cover with the sweeping market in Pettah. The Industrial Rural Development Program, provided much needed asistance in supplying fiscal installations for project enlargement intents, at low involvement rates. Local Bankss were besides financially supportive in helping to implement eco friendly merchandises.

4.3 The Administration

The company is of limited liability nature, which is ideal in the context of Maximus Pvt. Ltd. “ The concern spouses located overseas carry out market research for new ventures and has perceived the chance of fabricating “ printing tickets ” for garment makers. ”

“ The hand-crafted paper is non an public-service corporation merchandise and it has a niche market. The market of this merchandise is spread outing and besides it is more expensive than imported paper. In a state of affairs like this, Maximus has been able to pull both the international and local market. ” His strategic point of view has ever been to make a sustainable competitory advantage, by taking on a socially witting head set towards the production of his advanced creative activities. He has successfully managed to distinguish his merchandise through its fabrication procedure and by high criterions of invention.

He goes onto depict his strategic focal point to:

Address economic demands through rural authorization

Add economic value to elephants in their ain home ground

To do people receptive to preservation by presenting more economic solutions.

4.5 The Procedure

The initial move from the accounting profession to the household concern of printing, led Ranasinghe to research chances, hitherto untapped by other printing companies. Having a societal scruples led to the backward integrating of bring forthing the paper itself from waste stuff.

The procedure has chiefly involved, “ following the elephants way ” , workss have been set up strategically, where elephants roam in copiousness, since the droppings is the cardinal resource. Resources of natural stuff that go into developing the recycled paper and the forces are hired from that several locality, thereby guaranting nutriment for that community and significantly awareness sing the protection of the elephant.

Maximus has “ built ” the administration, by non restricting its production line to merely paper, instead it now manufactures a diversified scope of merchandises and services, “ therefore enabling the company to provide to a broad scope of demands in a assortment of Fieldss such as disposable placemats for the hotel industry, Printing and publication on reclaimable dung paper for environmental organisations, greeting/wedding cards/photo albums etc utilizing a combination of natural ingredients. ”

The patent rights have vastly aided in set uping Maximus as a major participant in the market and have helped develop and spread out the hand-crafted paper industry in Sri Lanka. Using the self-respect of this right in the universe market is one of the scheme which company capitalise in branding its merchandises in the planetary context.

“ The four dimensional conceptual model can be seen as a kaleidoscope, as an instrument through which to see the tremendously changing forms of new venture creative activity. ” ( Gartner, 1985 )

5.0 Decision

In reasoning, we can confidently province, that we have been successful in underscoring ;

the historical background and environmental demands and concerns that led to the outgrowth of Maximus Pvt. Ltd

Given an lineation of the attack, attitude and behavior of the person and community towards the invention

and

stated the schemes that were employed, and of which, the 1s that contributed to the success of the invention

Ranasinghe took on an chance to do a originative alteration, by developing a merchandise portfolio that clearly interacted with its environment. He has efficaciously used external networking with the local and international communities. He was successful in turn toing the hazard and uncertainness of his venture.

He took on the duty of constructing an administration over clip, with advanced and originative differentiation. His ability to get and pull off the assorted resources, have enabled him non merely to win national and international awards, but besides the Black Marias of the community at big. His “ ne’er palling ” attempts to stop the man-elephant struggle is applaudable.

“ Ranasinghe was confident that the concern Maximus, can play a more meaningful function in lending positively towards a firing national issue which is the human – elephant struggle. With this penetration the construct of “ Project Peace Paper ” was developed in which way the concern is traveling. ”